Forsythia
Forsythia × intermedia
Nearly indestructible once rooted, with one catch — cut it in winter and the spring flowers go out with the prunings.
Light Full sun — anything less costs it flowers.
Water Water it for the first year or two; very tough after that.
Height 3 m
Spread 8 ft 2 in
Spacing 250 cm
Spacing & sowing
- Plant spacing
- 8 ft 2 in
- In-row spacing
- 8 ft 2 in
- Between rows
- 10 ft 3 in
- Square-foot density
- Not suited to SFG
Growing
- Type
- Shrub · Perennial
- Botanical family
- Mixed / other
- Sunlight
- Full sun — anything less costs it flowers.
- Watering
- Water it for the first year or two; very tough after that.
- Feeding
- A compost mulch after pruning is usually all it asks.
- Frost tolerant
- Yes
- Flowering
- March
- Pruning
- Prune as soon as the flowers fade, and never in winter.
Through the year
- Mar–Mar Flowering
- Mar–Jul Bud Break
- Jul–Oct Growing
- Oct–Dec Leaf Fall
- Jan–Mar Leaf Fall
Companions
Daffodils, Muscari, Pulmonaria
Pests & problems
- Generally trouble-free No notable pest or disease problems when grown in the right conditions — one of the easy ones.
The Cottage Garden Companion — the gardener's herbarium at cottagegardencompanion.com